Opportunities

Academic Opportunities

Awards, Grants, Scholarships, and Fellowships

Anne K. Hanson '86 Award

This endowed scholarship was established in 1989 in memory of Anne K. Hanson '86 by her friends and family. Anne Hanson was a Russian Studies major who went on the Grinnell College Interim Tour of the USSR during her senior year. The Award will be used to partially fund at least 1 student who wishes to take a Russian Summer intensive language program. The program must be approved by the chair of the Russian department and be completed prior to graduation from Grinnell College. Selection for the Anne K. Hanson Memorial Award is made by the Russian Department faculty. The scholarship will partially fund student(s) to attend a summer language intensive course in Russian. Funds will be available for the next year if in a given year students are not selected. If the Russian Department faculty deem only one student exceptional, the department will consider providing full funding for the language intensive program. The award is paid directly to the student recipient.

Students may apply after completing one year of Russian language. To be considered, applicants must complete an application form and write an essay. Interviews with department faculty may be required. The deadline for applying is the Friday before Spring Break.

John Mohan Russian Study Award

The John Mohan Russian Study Award is an annual needs-based award available to both graduating students and undergraduates. The award is designated and intended primarily to fund projects and study abroad opportunities in the Russian language after graduation, but awards can also be made to current Russian language students who need to take a course in the United States or abroad during the summer.

Post-graduate awards are meant to provide graduating seniors who have seriously pursued the study of Russian with an opportunity to develop their language skills in the Russian-speaking world through a program or project of their own design. Under certain circumstances, the award may be used by students of sophomore standing or higher, who have completed at least one year of Russian language study; in these cases students may pursue the study of Russian in a summer language program in the US or in Russia. For post-graduation projects, students must use the award within 18 months following graduation.

Students who apply for this award should have pursued the study of Russian in a serious way. Usually that means that at least two years of college-level Russian have been completed. Students who have not had the opportunity to study in the region are favored, although recipients in the past who have already been to the region have proposed interesting projects that have been funded. Projects that have the effect of developing Russian language skills are favored and these may include: structured study programs (such as an ACTR semester), volunteerships, or internships, which have cultural, political or social value. The award is not intended for students engaged in profit-making activities. Projects that immerse the student in the Russian language are preferred.

Applications should be submitted to the Chair of the Russian Department, and will be reviewed by a committee consisting of faculty and the alumnae founders of the award (Diane Fisher Perkinson '82, Sharon McKee '82, and Emily Silliman '81). Applications are due in early March, and announced by the end of April.

For more information and advising assistance, please contact Todd Armstrong.

Boren Scholarships

Boren Scholarships provide up to $20,000 to U.S. undergraduate students to study abroad in areas of the world that are critical to U.S. interests and underrepresented in study abroad, including Africa, Asia, Central & Eastern Europe, Eurasia, Latin American, and the Middle East.

Off-Campus Study

Students who choose a concentration in Russian, Central, and East European Studies often choose to study off campus through programs such as CIEE (Prague), Lexia program (Poland), and SIT (Balkans), among others. For more information, please visit the Off-Campus Studies website.

Activities and Organizations

Russian Table

Students and faculty meet every Friday at 12 p.m. in JRC224C for informal Russian conversation. Speakers at every level are encouraged to participate. Students not on the meal plan are guests of the Russian Department.

Slavic Coffeehouse

Each spring, a Slavic Coffeehouse is co-sponsored by the Russian Department and Russian and Central and Eastern European Studies (RCEES). Students meet at kitchens on campus and in the homes of professors to prepare a variety of Slavic specialties, which are sold one evening in the Forum Coffeehouse. Proceeds from the evening fund an event for Russian House.